‘Aggressive ministers’ blamed after mandarin quits

One of the most senior civil servants stunned Whitehall by resigning yesterday amid signs of deteriorating relations between ministers and officials.

Ian Watmore, 53, who was in charge of cutting costs across government departments, quit six months after he was appointed as a permanent secretary at the Cabinet Office.

The department claimed that he was returning home to the North West where he would be focusing on non-executive and “spousal roles”, supporting his wife, who is to be ordained in the Church of England next month.

Cabinet Office colleagues denied that he left after a row over Government policy or Whitehall reforms. But sources have confirmed that he had a difficult relationship with Francis Maude, the Cabinet Office Minister, which precipitated his departure.